Movie Review - 'Taken'

Taken Starring Liam Neeson, Maggie Grace, and Famke Janssen Directed by Pierre Morel Rated PG-13

Pierre Morel’s Taken has already been released just about everywhere else in the world, and while it’s a strange strategy to open a star-driven action flick in Europe first and then import it to the United States, it has certainly paid off in this case. Worldwide earnings are already about $70 million. It’s easy to see why the film has so much appeal, and why it should do very good business in the U.S. for a few weeks. Taken is a great janitorial movie: There’s a big mess and Liam Neeson has to clean it up. This shouldn’t be mistaken for a classic or a masterpiece, but what it sets out to do it does very, very well, and it’s a hell of a lot of fun watching Neeson beat the stuffing out of nameless, faceless henchmen. The script, co-written by Luc Besson (The Professional, The Fifth Element), is mostly no-nonsense and keeps its eye on the ball. Neeson plays recently retired government agent Bryan Mills. We don’t know what he did exactly, but we learn enough to know he’s not a man to be trifled with, and we know he gave it all up to spend time with his teenage daughter (Maggie Grace from Lost). She travels to Paris, and while she’s on the phone with her very protective father, her friend gets abducted. She’s next. One of the attackers picks up her cell phone and Mills threatens him sternly: “If you let my daughter go now, that’ll be the end of it. But if you don’t, I will look for you, I will find you, and I will kill you.” Fearing the worst – human trafficking is a European plague that is responsible for thousands of disappearances each year – Mills springs into action. Morel finds terrific ways to keep the action fresh for over an hour, and while there needs to be a little back story and a denouement, the beginning and end of Taken are clearly not as inspired as the film’s breathtaking second act. It’s as if they’re written for a different film, so if you’re looking for things to criticize, that’s where to start. Fortunately, it’s also where you’d finish. It’s easy to draw comparisons of Taken to Ransom, The Bourne Supremacy or 24, and Hardcore, a shocking 1979 Paul Schrader movie about a father’s search for his runaway daughter in the L.A. porn scene. But that’s fine. This isn’t a film that’s trying to shatter the mold; on the contrary, it’s playing on your familiarity with this type of story, filling it with superb action and a solitary hero who is always one step ahead even though he’s fighting from behind. Despite his size, the 6’4” Neeson has not saturated his résumé with action roles, though he still shows remarkable facility in hand-to-hand combat and the other action scenes. He has also proven that he’s a tremendously empathetic actor, and Taken provides him an opportunity to showcase both with surprising balance. He’s vital enough to make the action believable, and you see the torment in his face whenever Bryan Mills takes a breath, remembering his somber mission. Neeson is a throwback, and despite its more contemporary stunts and editing, Taken is a throwback picture. It’s simple, direct, exciting and a great time at the movies.

Comments

[Emo]

Excellent...your review makes me want to see it even more. I've had pretty big hopes about this one.

[Chris]

I agree with your reiview other than the ending. I thought it was great closure to the story and an absolute suprise. You have to admit, you forgot about the portion of the movie that led up to it!

[angela]

your review is so close to the real movie your review made me more intrested in watching the movie even more..

[Albanian]

Yeah i was a little pissed about it but the movie was good enough to make me like it. But then again, you're right it's not a masterpiece or a classic or a anything, just a movie well-made.

[Alysha]

I really liked it!!!!

["lollipop"]

I just saw Taken. As grandmother of a 17 yr old female, I'll insist she see it. Perfect timing---to be released before Spring Break and the celebrations that go along with graduation from high school or college. Liam Neeson was most believable as the impassioned father endowed with the skills of an assassin. I felt his anger and pain and applauded instead of flinching when he eliminated each of the GDSOB's engaged in their monstrous "business". Neeson is intimidating by reason of his stature and carried it off extremely well. We were left to surmise whether the daughter and mother would really "get it", but those who see the movie will "get" the message . Now, when will some studio have the good sense to initiate a "007-type" series based on Barry Eisler's Japanese-American protagonist John Rain. Second to LeCarre, Eisler is the most erudite writer to present intrigue, exotic settings, and, as LeCarre, has a connection to the world he writes about.

[buy wow gold]

This is one of the best movie I've ever seen.

[WVian]

Just saw the movie this weekend and loved it! Liam Neeson is easy on the eyes and the nonstop action was superb! We need a sequel!